Golf is a highly popular worldwide source of exercise and recreation for persons of all ages and levels of skill. To become proficient in the game, and card scores at a par or bogie level, it is necessary for the golfer to develop a precision swing so that he or she can accurately strike the ball with the wood or iron in order to propel the ball in the desired line of flight toward the hole. Much has been written over the years on developing a good golf swing. Many professional teachers spend their career teaching persons to develop a grooved golf swing. Numerous video lessons are also available directed to teaching a golfer how to develop a precision golf swing.
A number of inventions have been developed over the years for the purpose of assisting a golfer to develop a precision swing. Four U.S. patents disclose various types of harnesses or limb guiding means intended to assist a golfer in developing a precision golf swing.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,773,691, granted Dec. 11, 1956, F. E. Redfield, discloses a harness device for guiding the movement of the rear elbow during a golf back-swing. The device includes a belt adapted to encircle the waist of the player. A guide rail is secured to the belt. The guide rail extends substantially from the centre of the abdomen upwardly and rearwardly relative to the waist. The guide rail provides a means for guiding a trolley member, to which is attached an armband or loop member which encircles the rear arm of the player in the elbow region. The trolley member follows the guide rail throughout its length. The arm band and waist belt can be reversed to accommodate a left-hand golfer. One object of the guiding means is to provide guidance during pre-selected critical portions of the golf stroke. Another object is to prevent the right or rear elbow of a right-handed player, or conversely the left elbow of a left-handed player, from "flying", that is, being displaced an improper distance from the torso and waist during the back-swing and down-swing portions of the golf stroke. Redfield does not disclose any attachments that fasten to the forward arm or forward leg of the golfer.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,188,090, L. E. Job, granted Jun. 8, 1965, discloses an arm restraining device for golfers. The golf swing trainer comprises a body harness, and a thong connected to the body harness at a point near the armpit of the right arm of a right-handed golfer and to an attachment adapted to be fitted to the hand or wrist of that arm, the length of the thong being such that when the player is addressing the ball, the elbow of that arm is maintained slightly bent. An objective of the trainer is to prevent the tendency during a golf swing to straighten the right elbow in an attempt to put more force into the stroke with the right hand on the down-swing. The trainer prevents undue straightening of the right elbow without hindering the swing during the back-swing and down-swing portions of the golf stroke. No devices are secured to the forward leg of the golfer to control the movement of that leg during the golf swing.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,740,052, P. E. Arkin, granted Jun. 19, 1973, discloses a golf practice device which comprises an elastic member which is adapted to be attached to the forearm of a golfer so that the arm is held straight against bending during the back-swing and down-swing aspects of the golf swing. The golf practice device includes a length of flexible cord, including a clamp at each end thereof. The clamps are adapted to engage the cord at any position along the length in order to form a loop at each end of the cord. The first loop encircles the area of a golfer's shoulder, travels across the golfer's back, around the golfer's forearm, and to a second loop encircling the joint between the thumb and adjacent finger of the hand of the golfer's other arm. The device does not utilize a strap which is secured to the foreknee of the golfer.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,239,228, B. F. J. Norman et al., granted Dec. 16, 1980, discloses a golf swing training device which includes an adjustable tether for joining the upper arms of a golfer in order to coordinate the relative motion of the arms of the golfer during the back-swing and down-swing stages of the golf stroke. The arm joining tether includes first and second flexible straps which include hook and pile fasteners in order to secure the straps around the arms of the golfer. The restraint device is alleged to be useful during golf practice for training the golfer to coordinate the relative movements of his arms during his stroke. No tethers are secured to either of the legs of the golfer.
David Leadbetter, Director of Instruction at Lake Nova Golf Club in Orlando, Fla. markets a restraining strap under the trade-mark SWING LINK. This strap has a chest band and two arm bands connected to the chest band. The bands are adjustable in length, and are worn around the chest and upper arms of the golfer. The objective is to restrain the upper arms against the chest of the golfer in order to encourage a tight, controlled swing. No resilient connecting straps between the chest band and the arm bands are used.